Bridges Utilized as Day-Roosts by Bats

Davis, Russell; Cockrum, E. Lendell

doi:10.2307/1377225

Cited by 22 publications

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“…Prior to the early 1960's, bridges generally were overlooked as potential roosting habitat for bats (10), although it is recognized now that they provide bats with roost sites that are relatively cryptic with generally low levels of human disturbance (2). Thus, in recent years studies have begun to document the magnitude and frequency of bridge use for night and day roosting by several bat species (e.g., 11,12,13,14,15).…”

Section: Acknowledgmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bat use of highway bridges in south-central Montana /

Hendricks¹,

Lenard²,

Currier³

et al. 2005

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We studied use of highway structures by bats in the Billings, Montana area during 2003 and 2004. We found evidence of bat use at 78 of 130 highway structures examined during summer 2003 in Carbon, Stillwater, and Yellowstone counties; 66 structures were used apparently exclusively for night roosting, and 12 bridges were day roosts. Use of highway structures was widespread throughout the study area and among the state highway system categories (Interstate: 73.2%, Primary: 47.2%, Secondary: 57.1%, Local/State Maintained: 60.0%). Day roosts were found in all highway system categories, but relatively more were in the Local/State Maintained category; maternity colonies were in all but the Interstate category. Bat species identified at day roosts included Big Brown Bat (Eptesicus fuscus), Hoary Bat (Lasiurus cinereus), Little Brown Myotis (Myotis lucifugus), and Western Small-footed Myotis (M. ciliolabrum), none of which is a state Animal Species of Concern; use of a bridge for day-roosting by the Hoary Bat is apparently the first documented case for this species. Day roosts occupied in 2003 and 2004 included maternity colonies of Big Brown Bat (2) and Little Brown Myotis (2). Use of bridges for roosting, and intensity of use at night roosts, were generally unrelated to the landscape within 3 km (1.86 miles) of the structure. Only mean percent of forest cover was significantly greater around day roost structures, but substantial overlap among unused, night roost, and day roost categories indicated that this pattern was a trend and not the major influence on structure use by bats. All day roosts were found within 8 km (5 miles) of riparian corridors. Bats used 75.9% of concrete structures, 37.5% of steel structures, and 31.6% of wooden ones. Day roosts were found in concrete or wood structures, none in steel; three maternity colonies were in wood bridges, one in a concrete bridge. Slab bridges were the least preferred concrete spans because they provided few if any protected sites for roosting bats on the underside of the deck. Night roosting bats perched on the exposed vertical surfaces of girders of concrete and steel bridges. Day roosting sites in concrete bridges included accessible expansion joints between cast-in-place and T-beam bridge sections, the longitudinal slots on the underdeck of parallel box-beam structures, and the space between two abutting bridge lanes. Day roosts in wood bridges included the narrow space between parallel girders, and the spaces between wood supports under the deck where railing posts were anchored. Of the 12 day-roosts found in 2003, nine, including all maternity colonies, were occupied on at least one visit in 2004. Maternity colonies were occupied from early June (possibly late May) into September, but dispersal from them had begun by late August.

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Section: Acknowledgmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bat use of highway bridges in south-central Montana /

Hendricks¹,

Lenard²,

Currier³

et al. 2005

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“…Bridges provide a variety of roosting habitat for bats (Davis andCockrum 1963, Keeley andTuttle 1999), including sites for maternity colonies (Hendricks et al submitted). Although bridges are relatively few in the Pryor Mountains, periodic inspection of them may reveal unsuspected roosts of several species, including Pallid Bat.…”

Section: Bridgesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bats of the BLM Billings Field Office in south-central Montana, with emphasis on the Pryor Mountains /

Hendricks¹,

Carlson²,

Currier³

2004

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all participated in the netting sessions on one or more nights. Dave Worthington shared his file of bats marked in the Pryor Mountains in 1990, and Dennis Flath provided his data for bats captured at Gyp Spring in 1976 and 1978. We extend a special thanks to Bette Lowery for her hospitality and interest in the bats of her ranch, and to Burt Williams for arranging our meeting with Bette. For help in production of this report we thank Amy Pearson (MNHP) for making the map.

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“…The Hoary Bat is a solitary roosting species that switches roosts frequently (Lewis 1995); this could make detection of their use of any particular highway structure highly unlikely. Bridge surveys often involve only one or a few visits to specific structures (Davis and Cockrum 1963;Keeley and Tuttle 1999;Adam and Hayes 2000; this study), or else monitor activity more intensively at a small number of structures (Davis and Cockrum 1963;Pierson et al 1996;Adam and Hayes 2000); the number of bridge visits or scope of intensive surveys may be inadequate to detect an extremely low frequency of bridge use by the Hoary Bat. Studies that focus on bridges known to be used as night roosts (Pierson et al 1996; Adams and Hayes 2000) may overlook Hoary Bats if their use of bridges is more likely during the day, the time when we made our observation.…”

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confidence: 97%

“…The Hoary Bat was not among the 17 bat species found during a broad survey of 2421 highway structures (bridges and culverts) across the western and southern United States (Keeley and Tuttle 1999). Studies of smaller samples of bridges in Arizona, northern California, and the Oregon Coast Range also did not report the presence of Hoary Bats (Davis and Cockrum 1963;Pierson et al 1996;Adam and Hayes 2000).…”

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Use of a Bridge for Day Roosting by the Hoary Bat, <em>Lasiurus cinereus</em>

et al. 2005

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The Hoary Bat (Lasiurus cinereus) is a migratory species with the widest distribution of all New World bats. It is a solitary species that roosts during the day and night primarily among tree foliage. During a survey of 130 highway structures (bridges and culverts) in south central Montana for evidence of use by bats, we discovered a female Hoary Bat with young in mid July 2003 using a wooden bridge as a day roost. This is the first report of Hoary Bats using a bridge as roosting habitat.

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Bridges Utilized as Day-Roosts by Bats

Abstract: bells and sudden noises. All other observations of these Cryptotis pm'va were in agreement with numerous reports in the literature.-CARL

Cited by 22 publications

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Bat use of highway bridges in south-central Montana /

Bat use of highway bridges in south-central Montana /

Bats of the BLM Billings Field Office in south-central Montana, with emphasis on the Pryor Mountains /

Use of a Bridge for Day Roosting by the Hoary Bat, <em>Lasiurus cinereus</em>

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